


Jigsaw

by blumen



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Anxiety, Comfort, Depression, Dissociation, Established Relationship, Ficlet, Hugs, Hurt/Comfort, Love, M/M, Mental Health Issues, One Shot, POV Third Person
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-05
Updated: 2018-05-05
Packaged: 2019-05-02 16:07:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,270
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14548395
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blumen/pseuds/blumen
Summary: “Keith?” Lance mumbled, voice thick with sleep. The room was pitch black except the soft glow of moonlight behind the curtains. “What you doing?”“I'm going out,” Keith replied. Lance's eyes were still adjusting to being awake but he could make out the shadow of Keith pulling on his jacket. “Sorry for waking you.”“What time is it?”“Around three.”“Jesus, Keith.”“Go back to sleep. I'll be back before you wake up.”“Wait, gimme a minute.”----Keith and Lance head to McDonalds at 3 a.m. to curb a depressive episode with surprising success.





	Jigsaw

“Keith?” Lance mumbled, voice thick with sleep. The room was pitch black except the soft glow of moonlight behind the curtains. “What you doing?”

“I'm going out,” Keith replied. Lance's eyes were still adjusting to being awake but he could make out the shadow of Keith pulling on his jacket. “Sorry for waking you.”

“What time is it?”

“Around three.”

“Jesus, Keith.”

“Go back to sleep. I'll be back before you wake up.”

“Wait, gimme a minute.”

Lance peeled away the sheets whilst wiping away sleep from his aching eyes. He didn't bother changing out of his Iron Man pajamas and simply opted to shrug on his bomber jacket.

“You don't have to come with me,” Keith murmured.

“I'm coming,” and they left it at that.

When they exited the room, Keith flicked on the lights so they could shuffle into their shoes without falling over. The sharp, yellow light was jarring against the onyx backdrop outside.

Lance's beaten up car was parked a minute away from their flat (competition on their street for the closest parking was rough.) The car was fire-truck red and even had a tape deck but Lance treated it like a first born child. The opening and closing of the car doors felt like a cannon among the static silence.

Occasionally, another car would pass and a few residents still had their lights on but in the space of Lance's car it felt like they were the only people in the world.

“Is McDonalds okay with you?” Lance asked, no longer whispering but his tone was still soft. Keith's chest clenched at his look of concern but held down the rising anger that came with it. Lance wanted to help. Keith wasn't manipulating or burdening him; Lance was offering his care for nothing in return. It was a hard concept to grasp for Keith but after their last argument he said he'd at least try. Even if that meant reaching out, he had promised.

“Yeah, sounds good.”

Lance switched on the radio which played strange club music that only seemed to appear at that hour. Keith didn't have much experience with such, but it seemed like the sort of music you would find blasting at a drug den. Oddly enough, the weirdness helped tether Keith back to reality, the sensation of drifting becoming weaker. His choices for music were the radio or Lance's playlist which consisted of the Mii theme tune and royalty free music. Keith would pretend he hated it but he secretly found it quite endearing.

God, he loved Lance so much it felt like he would explode with it. It felt pathetic to admit, even to himself, but Lance was the first person he had a connection with outside of Shiro. And with Lance came Pidge, and then Hunk, and Allura, and Coran, until Keith actually felt like a functioning human with actual friends and people to care about. Keith had so much to thank him for. He wanted to convey this but finding the words felt overwhelming so he squeezed Lance's hand instead, probably crushing his fingers as he did so. _I love you,_ it said, and judging by how Lance squeezed back, he understood.

When they finally arrived, Keith was not surprised to see there weren't any other cars in the parking lot. The air was pleasantly warm when they stepped out and smelled slightly of petrol from the adjacent station. As they stepped inside, the fluorescent lights blinded them. Keith had to squint to comfortably see.

“What do you want?” Lance asked, nudging his arm. Keith inhaled deeply, not realizing they had already reached the counter. Shit, he hadn't practised his order and he must have looked terrifying at that moment and- “He'll take a Big Mac meal and coke.”

Keith prickled. He knew Lance didn't mean it to be condescending but he couldn't help but feel like an invalid. Sure, his social skills weren't stellar but he could at least place an order without having a panic attack. As the cashier turned to retrieve their meals with an expression that screamed _please, kill me_ , Lance wrapped his arm around Keith's shoulder and pecked his cheek.

“It's okay,” Lance murmured against his ear. Through the reek of oil and bubbling fat, Keith detected that Lance had been stealing his shower gel again. “It's all fine.”

It was clearly not fine. Keith's chest wouldn't stop feeling as if a rhino was perched on it, and for what? Nothing had happened and yet he could feel phantom insects crawling along his skin. Keith couldn't describe it in more eloquent terms than _you just feel like ugh, like, everything's really gross._

“I can see you thinking,” Lance said. “What's going on up there?”

Keith automatically opened his mouth to say 'nothing,' but stopped himself. Lance wouldn't get it and it wasn't like Keith was good at explaining either. But he said he'd try and the look on Lance's face when he screamed that Lance would never understand how he felt had struck him like a gunshot. It hurt to isolate himself but it hurt Lance more and he wanted this to work, even if every part of him was screaming to throw off Lance's arm and leave.

“Nothing good,” Keith mumbled, trying not to cringe when Lance's grip tightened. _He's trying to help, fucking let him._ “I-it just all feels wrong. I hate feeling like this and I don't get it. It's just all wrong and I'm just so tired of always feeling like this.”

“But it's not always going to be like this.”

“Yes, but even if that was true, I feel like shit _now_ and it sucks,” Keith snapped. “Sorry, I-there's a reason I don't like being around other people when I'm like this.”

Thankfully, the cashier interjected by returning with their meals. Lance carried their tray to a table near the window, showcasing flashes of light dashing down the passing motorway. Keith quickly began eating, partly as an excuse not to talk about feelings and also partly because he didn't how hungry he was until he popped the first fry in his mouth. He felt Lance look over at him every so often, his skin burning beneath the scrutiny. _He's not gonna want to be with me any more. He's finally had enough._

“We're gonna get through this, Keith,” Lance promised, nudging his foot against Keith's. “I'm not going anywhere, okay? I love you so much but you need more than what I can give you. You need therapy or medication or I don't know what, but you need the kind of help I don't have qualifications for.”

Keith nodded. He hadn't realized his nails were digging into his palms until Lance unfurled his fists.

“I'm not gonna force you to go but you don't have to live like this.”

Keith nodded again.

“I'll look into it.”

It was worth it for how Lance smiled at him, his eyes still sad but shimmering with hope.

“Thank you.”

Keith suddenly felt a bone deep ache to hold something, specifically Lance, and instead of suppressing it he moved to Lance's bench to bury his face in his neck. Lance was so warm and surprisingly soft for all his lithe muscle. He felt like a life-sized teddy bear, only better. Lance's hand rubbed his back, spreading heat wherever he touched.

“Feel any better?” Lance asked into his hair. Keith pondered for a moment.

“Yeah,” he replied, and surprised himself when he realized he meant it.

“It's going to be fine, Keith, I promise you.”  
And strangely enough, Keith found himself believing it.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!! I don't know how I feel about this ficlet but I was craving some more hurt/comfort and I haven't written klance in over a year or so so I had to quickly amend that
> 
> [my tumblr](http://blumenwrites.tumblr.com/)


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